Obsession Falls(73)

I picked at my muffin, glad I’d just declined that interview in Massachusetts. “I guess I don’t know a lot of details about his dating history.”

“It’s easy to forget he ever let anyone past those grumpy defenses of his. Until you, it had been a while. He took his role as a loner pretty seriously.”

That made me smile. So did he. “That doesn’t surprise me.”

“Well, despite what people in town are saying, I think one of you has an enemy you don’t know about. Someone who’s out for revenge.”

“Wait, what are people in town saying?”

“That you’re keeping a terrible secret and your stalker is going to expose it.”

I blew out a breath. “Great. So glad to know I’m now the town liar.”

“I think my favorite theory is that you’re the daughter of a crime boss and you’re trying to hide out in Tilikum. But your father’s enemies have already found you.”

“That is a good one,” Ledger said. “Not that I believe it, but it would make for a good story.”

“I’m definitely not the daughter of a crime boss. Although my dad was a politician. But a small-town politician and everyone in Pinecrest loved him.”

“He could have had enemies,” Ledger said.

“Yeah, that’s what my mom keeps insisting. She either knows something she isn’t telling me or she’s just trying to make this about her. I’m leaning toward the latter.”

“How about some good news to balance out all this bad juju,” Sandra said.

“Yes, please.”

“Subscriptions are up for the first time in about a decade. So are newsstand sales. Convincing Lou to lead with the local interest stuff on the front page looks like it’s paying off.”

“Really?”

She smiled. “Yeah. And I think it’s more than just the local focus. We’ve done that before. But no one wants to read a boring recap of the event everyone in town saw in person. Your idea for the Hometown Spotlight was brilliant. They say bad news sells, and it does, but so does heartwarming human interest stuff, especially when it’s something readers can relate to.”

“That’s what I was thinking. It doesn’t all have to be bad to be compelling.”

“Seems you were right. If this keeps up, who knows. We might be able to afford to pay Ledger.”

He pulled out his earbud. “What?”

“Never mind.”

Out of the blue, Lou’s office door opened. He always made me jump when he did that. So far, Lou had been nice enough. But he spent so much time in his office, it made him seem broody and mysterious.

Not in a sexy Josiah Haven way. In a make-me-scared-of-him way.

So when his furrowed gaze turned on me, my stomach did a flip.

“Audrey. Can I see you in my office?”

His gruff voice was so ominous. I glanced at Sandra, but she didn’t seem concerned. She just shrugged and took a bite of her muffin.

“Yeah, of course.”

I got up, feeling shaky. It occurred to me as I walked into Lou’s office that he was probably so intimidating because he reminded me of my father. That dark brow, protruding belly, and booming voice were so much like my dad.

Swallowing hard, I took a seat across his cluttered desk while he sat in his big office chair.

I knew if I spoke first, I’d start rambling, so I kept my mouth shut and waited. My heart beat uncomfortably hard and I clasped my hands in my lap, trying to keep still.

“We have a problem,” he said. “It’s partly my fault. When I hired you, I didn’t bother checking your references. Your resume looked good and you didn’t annoy me in the interview. That was enough for me. But it seems that there are some things you failed to disclose.”

I had no idea what he was talking about. “I’m sorry, I don’t know what you mean.”

He held up a piece of paper. “When you filled out the online application, you didn’t make it clear that you’d been fired from your last job for cause.”

“I wasn’t fired. I was laid off.”

“Yeah, that’s what everyone says. But I’ve been told that you were fired for some very serious offenses, including theft.”

“What? I never stole anything.”

“I’m not going to report you to the authorities or anything like that. But some very serious allegations have been brought against you. I need to look into it.”

“Who did you talk to?”

“That’s confidential information.”

“If someone is accusing me of a crime, I have a right to know who it is.”

“I can’t tell you at this time.”

“Do you even know who it is?”

He hesitated. “They have asked to remain anonymous but they were able to verify that their information is reliable.”

“How?”

“Look, this is an internal matter, and I have to do my own digging to see if it’s true.”

“Lou, I swear, I didn’t get fired from my last job. They were downsizing and I got laid off. And I never stole anything. I’ve never even been accused of stealing.”

“My source has provided evidence that suggests otherwise.”

“Have you talked to my old boss? She can clear this up in two seconds.”